Best Value Colleges For Computer Science Majors

According to PayScale’s College ROI Report, computer science majors have the best 20-year net return on investment out of any degrees on the list, which can probably be credited to the high earning potential a computer science degree warrants in today’s technology-driven world.

20 Year ROI annualized to represent the % of expected ROI received each year after graduation.

Annual ROI

20 Year ROI annualized to represent the % of expected ROI received each year after graduation.

Annual ROI

20 Year ROI annualized to represent the % of expected ROI received each year after graduation.

Annual ROI

20 Year ROI annualized to represent the % of expected ROI received each year after graduation.

20 Year Net ROI

Difference between 20 Year Median Pay for a bachelor’s grad and 24 Year Median Pay for a high school grad minus Total 4 Year Cost.

20 Year Net ROI

Difference between 20 Year Median Pay for a bachelor’s grad and 24 Year Median Pay for a high school grad minus Total 4 Year Cost.

20 Year Net ROI

Difference between 20 Year Median Pay for a bachelor’s grad and 24 Year Median Pay for a high school grad minus Total 4 Year Cost.

20 Year Net ROI

Difference between 20 Year Median Pay for a bachelor’s grad and 24 Year Median Pay for a high school grad minus Total 4 Year Cost.

Total 4 Year Cost

Full cost, including tuition & fees, room & board, and books & supplies. Actual net cost may vary based on a student’s academic success and family income. Source: IPEDS

Total 4 Year Cost

Full cost, including tuition & fees, room & board, and books & supplies. Actual net cost may vary based on a student’s academic success and family income. Source: IPEDS

Graduation Rate

% of full-time, first-time degree seeking undergrad students who began their studies at the given school and graduate within 6 years. Source: IPEDS

Typical Years to Graduate

# of years it takes for at least 65 percent of graduates from a given school to receive their diplomas. Source: IPEDS

Average Loan Amount

Received by full-time, first-time degree seeking undergrad students, multiplied to represent amount over four years. Includes all Title IV loans and all institutionally- and privately-sponsored student loans. Source: IPEDS

In case you hadn’t noticed, technology is ubiquitous these days, permeating every facet of our world, from the iPhone in your pocket to Google’s self-driving cars roaming the streets outside your office. This explosion in tech means there’s a relative scarcity of employees who can invent, code, develop build it all, and computer science and math majors are poised to cash in on that shortage. PayScale’s College ROI Report provides expected return on investment for different majors based on expected 20-year earnings for alumni from top universities across the nation, and the return on investment for computer science majors is the highest overall. And by using the College ROI Report, computer science majors can use the findings to make an informed decision of which computer science programs offer the best return for their educational dollar.

Perennially coming in as one for best value colleges for computer science majors is Stanford University in Silicon Valley, home to some of the largest high-tech companies and startups in the world. Stanford might top the charts for best college for students to pursue a computer science degree, but it, unfortunately, is also at the top of the list for having one of the worst college mascots; a tree (‘Cardinal”, if you’re feeling fancy). In fact, Stanford doesn’t actually have a mascot, the school unofficially reverted to “Cardinal” because it was the university’s color. Official mascot or not, Stanford’s graduation rate is still near perfect at 96 percent.

Another high-ranked school for computer science majors in our College ROI report is a consistently high performer across the board: UC Berkeley.

All three top-tier best value colleges for computer science majors prove to be wise investments. One thing’s for sure, computer science majors can expect one of the most lucrative ROIs out of any degree on the College ROI Report. Use PayScale’s College ROI Report to see how well a computer science degree from your current or potential university pays its alumni back in the real world.